


Nick Gets Shot

by valis2



Series: Gratuitous Nick Hurt/Comfort [3]
Category: Riptide (TV)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-03-13
Updated: 2011-03-13
Packaged: 2017-10-19 15:35:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/202422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valis2/pseuds/valis2
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Another day, another warehouse.  Part of the Gratuitous Nick Hurt/Comfort Series.  Notes:  This is exactly what the series title states:  gratuitous Nick h/c.  There is very little plot.  No beta.  Just Nick, and h/c.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nick Gets Shot

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Penball](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Penball).



> This was written as a birthday gift for Penball.

"Why does it always have to be a warehouse?" grumbled Cody, taking the safety off his handgun.

Next to him, Nick grinned, holding his own gun in both hands. "What, you'd rather have a shootout at the pier?"

"Well, at least I could work on my tan at the same time." Cody glanced behind them at Murray, who was tapping anxiously at his portable keyboard.

"Almost in place, guys," he said, not even looking up.

"I'll go around the east side," said Nick. "Then I'll hit Moe--"

"Moe?"

"The guy with the bowl cut. C'mon, work with me here."

"Okay. So I'm stuck with Larry and Curly, then?"

"Oh, I get it!" said Murray. "The Three Stooges! But...ah...there are more than three of them, Nick, so your metaphor will break down--"

"It's just a joke," said Nick hastily. "How's that distraction coming?"

"Thirty-six seconds," said Murray, hitting another key. "I've just begun the initialization. The fireworks should start very soon. Get it? Fireworks?" He hooted in delight.

"Yeah, sure." Nick focused on Cody. "Just remember to get Larry, okay? I think Curly's left the room already."

"Larry. Sure. Got it."

"Thirteen seconds," said Murray.

Nick made a couple of hand gestures, the kind that were at one point military-based, but were now pretty much unintelligible to anyone but Cody and sometimes Murray. Cody nodded-- _Yes, I will flank on the right and take care of Murray_ \--and watched Nick's back as he took off around the side of the barrels.

Cody dimly wondered what was in the barrels. Murray would probably know, but with only four seconds left, he didn't want to interrupt.

"Here it comes!" said Murray in an excited whisper.

There was silence for a long moment, the only sound that of their breathing, and then there was a huge boom that shook the ground and rattled the windows. Cody peeked out from behind the barrels, noting that Larry was staring in the direction of the noise, completely bewildered. Cody jumped up and crept up behind him, knocking him out with his gun. "Murray, c'mon!"

"That was boss!" said Murray. "I never even imagined that a sound system could do that. It really sounded like an explosion!"

"Shh," hissed Cody. "We've got to get to Amelia. Did you call the police?"

"Call them?" asked Murray. "Well, not exactly. I notified them electronically through their dispatch system. It was triggered by the same cue for the sonic disturbance--"

"I'll take that as a yes." Cody heard a gun hit the floor and a scuffle on the other side of the barrels, and could only hope that Nick was all right. He raced into the next room, Murray hot on his heels, and they snuck behind a set of wooden crates. "Looks like everyone's gone to see what the noise was about," said Cody quietly. "Is Amelia still in the same place?"

Murray tapped on his keyboard, the single line of letters glowing at the top. "Roboz says yes, but that's only if she's still wearing her bracelet transmitter, of course."

"We'll just have to go on that, then." Cody popped up cautiously, looking around. _Nick should be with us. Where is he?_ There was a guard at the end of the room, standing in front of a door which might possibly be where Amelia was being kept. "Okay, we need another distraction. There's a forklift--"

"A forklift? I've always wanted to drive a forklift!" said Murray enthusiastically.

"Uh...actually, I was going to just put a brick on the gas pedal," said Cody.

Murray only looked a little crestfallen at that, but then brightened. "Are you going to rough up the guard? Go mano a mano with him? Give him a right hook and then a jab--"

"I'm going to distract him and then knock him out." He was getting more worried by the moment.

"Say, where's Nick?" Murray turned to peer behind them.

"Right here," said Nick, sounding breathless. There was a red welt on his right cheek. "Ready?"

Cody made a few gestures, outlining his plan, and then Nick was speeding across the room, heading straight for the forklift. "Nick, wait--" Cursing, Cody followed behind him, keeping low, Murray glued to his side.

Nick got on the forklift, ducking down behind the control panel and starting it up. The guard immediately looked in his direction, and Nick slammed on the gas and jerked the steering wheel, knocking boxes out of the way and heading straight for the guard. The guy panicked, squeezing off a couple shots, and then dropped his gun and ran for it.

"C'mon!" yelled Nick. He jumped down from the forklift and gestured impatiently.

"Maybe next time," said Cody, patting Murray on the shoulder.

Shouts and footfalls, and suddenly a half dozen bad guys came in through the huge sliding door at the end of the room. Nick kicked open Amelia's door, and they all rushed in, Cody and Nick covering the door and shooting wildly as Murray untied Amelia. The room was full of odds and ends, pieces of lumber and odd bits of steel.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"We're the Riptide Detective Agency," said Murray. "We've been sent to rescue you!"

Cody turned to look just in time to see her embrace Murray and kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you! I was so scared--" She held up her bracelet. "So you're the ones behind this bracelet Daddy made me wear!"

"We've gotta get out of here," said Nick, glancing at Cody. _There's no escape from this room._

"Any ideas?" asked Cody, pulling out a fresh clip.

"The police should be here within three minutes, according to Roboz," said Murray.

"Three minutes," said Nick, blowing out a breath.

Too much time, especially with only two clips left. Nick had a second gun, of course, but with the bad guys already outnumbering them and showing no sign of slowing down...

"Four guys on the left behind crates, two on the right, separate from each other, low to the ground," said Nick. "Maybe..."

"The forklift!" said Murray suddenly. "If we sent it into the crates on the left, we could knock out their cover..."

"Good idea, Murray," said Nick.

"Of course you think it's a good idea," said Cody, annoyed. "It's ridiculously dangerous."

"You got a better idea?" Nick changed clips. "We don't have much time. I'll take the guys on the right."

"Look, guys, there's a big sheet of metal! I can use this as a shield while I run for the forklift!"

"What?" said Cody. "No, Murray, that's--"

"Great idea, Murray," said Nick. "Cody, you cover him--" He made another gesture.

Murray dashed past them both, low to the ground, the piece of metal clutched in his hands. Fortunately, the forklift was close to the door, and Cody redoubled his shooting, forcing the guys on the left to shrink behind the crates. Nick took off running to the right.

 _This is a terrible plan._ Cody felt his heart squeeze a little in fear.

Murray was in the forklift, stomping on the gas pedal, and it sprang to life, roaring forward toward the crates and breaking through as the bad guys all scattered. The wail of sirens became audible, and the bad guys dropped their guns and put their hands up. Murray dropped his shield to the ground with a clatter and picked up one of the guns. "That's right! Stick 'em up, way high!"

"That was amazing!" Amelia called out from the doorway. Murray blushed.

"Well, Nick, looks like we wrapped up another case," said Cody, feeling the tension finally ease as Quinlan burst onto the scene. "Nick?"

He turned to look and his blood suddenly turned to icewater. Nick was on the ground, face contorted with pain, hands on his leg. The denim was dark with blood.

"Nick, oh god--" Cody raced to his side. "What happened?"

"Just a graze," said Nick weakly. "I was on the ground--lucky shot--"

"You mean unlucky." The bullet had made a furrow on his thigh nearly six inches long. Cody cursed, helping cover it with his hands, and Nick hissed in pain.

"Cody? Nick?" Murray was next to them. "Are you okay, Nick?"

"Just a scratch." Nick closed his eyes, resting his head on the concrete floor.

"Stay with me, Nick." Cody pressed down and Nick made a weak sound of pain.

"I'll get an ambulance," said Murray.

"What the hell is going on?" demanded Quinlan. "I get some bullshit story from the dispatcher about how the codes were sent to him electronically, and half the department's convinced it's a prank...and imagine my surprise to find you three bozos here."

"They were rescuing me," said Amelia.

"And who the hell are you?"

"Amelia Quinn. Daughter of Robert Quinn, owner of the _King Harbor Daily_ and at least twelve other newspapers." She jabbed her finger at him. "You should be giving these men a medal for what they just did. I will be writing the article myself, and you can bet it'll be on the front page."

"Well, Miss Quinn--"

" _Ms._ Quinn," corrected Amelia.

"Carlisle here will take your statement," he said abruptly, turning to Murray and glaring at him. "And you, geek-o, you're not heading anywhere until you spill your guts. I don't care what you do anywhere else with that computer of yours, but you do not screw around with my department's computers."

"If you would just take us seriously, Lieutenant, I wouldn't have to trick you into showing up," said Murray reasonably.

Cody turned back to Nick, who had gone even paler. He tried to reassure him, but there wasn't much he could say, so he kept his hands over the wound, watching as the tendons stood out in his neck. _Please let help get here soon._ Nick opened his eyes and blinked a couple times, and Cody smiled at him. "Just relax," he said. "The ambulance is almost here."

Nick didn't say a word, but the tension in his neck seemed to ease a little.

The EMTs showed up, and Cody was distracted by Carlisle, who pulled him away from Nick so he could give his statement. It was unnverving having Nick's blood on his hands while doing so. It made him sick to his stomach. Predictably, Carlisle confiscated his gun, and told him to stay in King Harbor.

 _I'll be staying in Marina Medical Center; wild horses won't drag me away._ Turning to where Nick had been lying, he was relieved to see that he was on a gurney, covered with a blanket, but then he noticed that Quinlan was standing next to him.

"What's going on?" he demanded as he reached Nick's side.

"Ryder's just giving me his statement," said Quinlan, putting his pen away. "You three rejects better stay in King Harbor until we get this all cleaned up."

"Don't worry, we're not going anywhere." Cody touched Nick's arm, worried at how pale he still looked. "Nick, I'll be at the hospital--I'll be right behind you, I swear." Nick gave him a weary nod, and then squeezed his eyes shut as the EMTs wheeled him out of the warehouse.

Murray was still explaining things to Carlisle, as it turned out, and Cody kept checking his watch, waiting for them to finish. After fifteen very long minutes, Murray was finally free, and they both hastily ran out to where the Jimmy was parked and loaded the sound equipment back into it.

Construction and rush hour traffic delayed them further, but eventually the blocky form of the Marina Medical Center came into view. Cody parked in the emergency parking lot. It took some searching to find Nick, who was still in the ER, the last stitch being put in as they came in.

"Hey," said Cody softly, going around the bed to the other side. "Nick?"

Nick's eyes fluttered open. His face was pinched with pain. "Hey," he said.

The doctor chatted with them amiably as he put a dressing on and taped it down. "Twenty stitches," he said. "He deserves a lollipop for being so still." Murray giggled. The doctor turned back to Nick. "Nick, what would you say your pain level is? On a scale of one to ten, one being the lowest."

Nick licked his lips. "Seven. Seven...anna half..."

"Okay, we'll get you something for that. I numbed the area as best as I could, but with a long laceration like this, it doesn't always work as well as we'd like. Just hold on, and I'll send the nurse in with something." He scribbled on the chart and then left hurriedly.

"I should have asked him how long Nick needs to stay," said Cody, coming closer to the bed.

"It looks like he's getting a course of fluids," said Murray, touching the IV pole. "They'll probably discharge him once he's taken the pain medication and he's finished this bag."

"Buddy, you okay?" asked Cody softly, touching his arm.

"Hurts," said Nick, closing his eyes.

"The nurse will be here any minute with--"

"The nurse is right here," said a petite blond. She had a syringe in her hand. "Mr. Ryder, can you tell me how you're feeling? What's your pain level right now, on a scale of one to ten, one being--"

"He already did that," said Cody impatiently. "He said seven and a half."

"Yeah," said Nick, opening his eyes.

"I usually like to double-check as a precaution," she said, opening the port on the IV line and injecting the medication. "He'll start feeling better in a few minutes." She turned and left.

Nick moved on the bed, and then winced, hissing in pain.

"Nick, you need to stay still," said Cody, worrying as Nick turned a shade paler. "Don't move. Let the painkiller do its work, okay?"

"I know," said Nick through gritted teeth. "It...really hurts." He moved again and made another pained noise.

"Stay still," begged Cody. "Nick, just give the medication time to kick in."

Nick reached out and grabbed Cody's shirt, pulling him close, making a whimpering noise, and Cody instinctively wrapped his arms around him, holding him. "Okay, Nick," said Cody in his best reassuring tone. "Just hold on, it'll be okay, I've got you." He traded a worried look with Murray, who came around and put a hand on Nick's arm. Cody looked down at Nick's black hair, at the fingers clutching his pale yellow shirt, and felt a stab of anger that Nick had been shot. He could feel him trembling, feel his uneven breaths. "I've got you, Buddy. You're going to be fine. The medication's going to make you feel a lot better. Just hold on."

A weak sob, and then Nick's grip started to loosen, slowly but inexorably, the shirt sliding out of his hand, and then he started to slip back to the bed. Cody guided him carefully, with Murray making sure his IV line didn't get caught on anything. Nick was completely out, his hand falling away from Cody's rumpled shirt.

"He'll feel better when he wakes up," said Murray confidently, smiling at Cody. "Don't worry."

"I know, Murray," said Cody quietly. "I just...it..." He took a shaky breath.

Murray looked at him, frowning. "I think you should sit down." He pulled over a chair, and Cody sat, leaning forward, trying to compose himself.

It was a few hours before Nick woke up again, looking a little better. A nurse came and disconnected the IV, giving them a bag full of dressings and sheets of instructions, with special warnings about how the wound might become infected and that they needed to monitor his temperature. After she left, Murray and Cody helped Nick put his shirt back on. His jeans were ruined, but Murray snagged a pair of scrubs on his way to pick up Nick's prescriptions from the hospital pharmacy.

After a quick trip in a wheelchair to the front door, Nick was bundled inside the Jimmy, and they headed off to King Harbor, Cody driving as slowly and carefully as possible. Nick had the backseat to himself, his leg stretched out.

Cody pulled into his parking spot, wishing he could park directly on the dock so Nick wouldn't have to walk down the companionway. It was a struggle helping him down the slope, and it took both of them to keep him steady and get him aboard the _Riptide_. Nick looked completely drained and they made him lie down on the fantail seat, even though he insisted he could take the stairs.

"I think we shouldn't take any new work on for at least a week," said Murray.

Nick opened his eyes. "What? No, look, that's ridiculous. I'll be fine--"

"Murray is absolutely right." Cody gave him a stern look. "Do you even understand what the term bed rest means?"

A piece of paper fell out of the pocket of Murray's blazer, and he stooped down to get it. "The doctor said you needed to stay off your feet for three days, at the very least."

"What's that?" asked Cody.

Murray blushed. "It's a note. From Amelia."

"Really?" said Cody, grinning. "What's it say?"

"'Thank you, Murray, my gallant knight. Call me.' And it's got her phone number." His smile was radiant.

"Good going, Murr," said Nick, looking exhausted. "But listen, don't call her too soon...make her wait..."

"Don't listen to him," said Cody. "You should call tomorrow. Strike while the iron's hot."

"No, hey, that's not a good idea. You don't want her thinkin' you're too...eager..." Nick winced.

"Murray, how about we get Mr. Play It Cool belowdecks?" Cody took one arm, and Murray took the other. Together they managed to half-carry him through the _Riptide_ to his bunk, and pull off his shoes and shirt. Cody carefully arranged the blankets over him, and Murray brought the prescriptions out. Nick took them reluctantly, and then Cody tucked him in, gently stroking his arm through the blankets until Nick's eyes slid shut and his breathing evened out.

Back in the salon, Murray took off his blazer and stretched. "What a busy day!"

"Definitely." Cody sat down behind the table and rubbed his eyes. "I think I'm ready for a nap, myself."

"Really?" Murray looked surprised. "I feel like I could program articulated subroutines with embedded controlled algorithms, myself." He grinned. "In fact, I think I've been meaning to give Roboz a few new upgrades." He took off for his stateroom.

"Have fun," said Cody. He sat in the stateroom, trying to unwind, read the new issue of Yachting, but it wasn't helping. He was still wound up tighter than a drum.

He went back to their stateroom, just to check on Nick. Sitting down on his own bunk, he listened to his steady breathing. His stress began to fade away. Lying down, he reminded himself that Nick was fine, that he and Murray were unhurt, and they had the gratitude of a newspaper magnate and his daughter.

 _Nick's fine. He's going to be fine._

He watched Nick sleep for a very long time.


End file.
